5 indicted on assault, ethnic intimidation charges in attack

3 assaulted near Taste of Cincinnati

On Tuesday, Matthew Johnson Jr., 23, Joshua McCoy, 21, Onea Lapsley, 22, Yahdea Brown, 19, and a 17-year-old were each indicted on one count of felonious assault, two counts of assault, one count of aggravated riot and one count of ethnic intimidation.

On Tuesday, Matthew Johnson Jr., 23, Joshua McCoy, 21, Onea Lapsley, 22, Yahdea Brown, 19, and a 17-year-old were each indicted on one count of felonious assault, two counts of assault, one count of aggravated riot and one count of ethnic intimidation.

A witness previously said the attack was racially motivated, noting "that was quite obvious in the slurs that were being thrown out.” The suspects are black, while Deters is white.

"If that lady hadn't stepped in, Jon would be dead because he was a white kid and it's disgusting either way," Joe Deters said.

All but one of the suspects were in custody, officers said.

The attack was caught on a surveillance camera on the side of a Metro bus.

Joe Deters said his son's girlfriend was also assaulted in the attack.

"Physically everybody's getting better. I think emotionally, it's going to take a while. He's a tough kid but still being attacked from the rear, knocked out, having your head stomped when you're unconscious...," Deters said.

Investigators said another man, Elliott James, 24, was also attacked by the same group of people that night, before Jon Deters and his girlfriend were attacked.

"I heard, you know, 'Hey, let's get him' or something in the realm of that and I immediately knew. I could feel it," James said. "I could tell that it wasn't that they were trying to take something from me or they were in need of something, it was literally out of they just wanted to beat someone."

A special prosecutor was brought in to review and try the case.

Each suspect faces up to 10 1/2 years in prison if convicted on all charges.